And so Pakistan's descent into chaos continues to gather pace this morning with the news that another opponent of the country's blasphemy laws has been assassinated. Shahbaz Bhatti, minister for religious minorities, was gunned down in Islamabad while travelling to a meeting. The Dawn reports:

Pity the Islamists; the rug has been pulled out from under their feet.

There is a lot of debate at the moment about what the fallout from the Middle East's uprisings will mean for the region. Is this the start of an Islamist uprising or the birth pangs of a more liberal and pluralistic Arab world?

Alexander Meleagrou-Hitchens is aPhD student at King's College, London. He has contributed to various online and printed publications including, The Daily Telegraph, Lebanon's Daily Star, Standpoint and NOWLebanon.